Outlander recap: Why do Brianna and Roger consider going back?

Brianna and Roger consider going back to their own time while Jamie learns of unrest in the backcountry. Here’s a look at Outlander Season 5, Episode 11.

Outlander Season 5, Episode 11 certainly set the stage for the final episode of the season. Here’s a look at the events.

Of course, there are spoilers in this post if you haven’t watched “Journeycake” yet.

We start with a timelapse. I know there were questions about the time between getting word to Governor Tryon in New York and getting him to use his influence to make sure Stephen Bonnet was found guilty of all his crimes and executed. This episode makes a note of saying time has passed and we’re now in Autumn 1772.

Ulysses’s story

Before we get into the main story for the episode, we need to quickly touch on Ulysses. He is hiding out at Claire and Jamie’s, where he shares that Jocasta had made him a free man after Hector’s death. Ulysses always chose to stay for Jocasta, but that still doesn’t mean he’ll be allowed to get away with murder.

So, he needs to figure out what to do next. There’s a perfect opportunity to save his life.

Lord John Grey has to head to Helwater. Lord Dunsaney has died and Lord John needs to make sure Willie is ready to take over running the place. He agrees to take Ulysses back to England as his manservant. It gets Ulysses safe passage on a boat and then in England, he will be a free man. Will he stay with Lord John? Who knows, but baby steps here.

We also get to see Jamie tell Brianna about Willie, which allows Bree and John to have an honest conversation. It continues building this bond between everyone. Sadly, John doesn’t know the truth about where Bree is really going.

Peanut butter and jelly sandwiches

It starts with discussions of peanuts and peanut butter and jelly sandwiches (based on experience, Claire would likely have called them peanut butter and jelly rather than peanut butter and jam, but that’s for another article). The Frasers and MacKenzie are on their way back to Fraser’s Ridge when they come across a burned down house. Bodies in the house make it clear that this was an attack and the people were killed before the house set on fire. It looks like it was the Natives in the area who did it

Roger finds a young girl who is close to death. There’s nothing anyone can do for her, so Roger kills her humanely as Jamie says a prayer over her. It’s rather sweet seeing the two men do this even if it is sad.

However, this is important for Richard and Lionel Brown showing back up. They want Jamie to help them lead a small group to help with law and order in the backcountry. Eventually, Jamie declines, and it’s clearly an offensive decision.

Bree and Roger could go back

While Young Ian and Jemmy are playing, Jemmy grabs the opal that Young Ian has. This is Otter Tooth’s opal and Jemmy immediately says that the opal burns. Claire, Bree, and Roger all feel the heat, but Jamie and Young Ian don’t. More importantly, when Jemmy grabs it again, he breaks the opal. The sound from the stones is clear to everyone who can time travel, including Jem.

This opens a discussion of Bree and Roger going back to their own time. It also opens a discussion for Young Ian. What is the secret that Claire and Jamie have been keeping?

They decide to tell him the truth, especially when Young Ian shows Claire and Jamie Otter Tooth’s journal. A journal that is written with a ballpoint pen. Young Ian is surprised but not all that shocked. He knew there was something strange but learned not to ask questions.

Young Ian wants to time travel, too. He wants to fix problems between him and his wife. However, he’s angry and sad that he can’t do that. He doesn’t have the gene.

In the end, Brianna and Roger agree to go back to their own time. Bree wants a legitimate story, though, one that they can tell to the people as they say goodbye. They say they’re heading to Boston as Roger has a job as a university professor there. It’s not completely a lie. It’s just happening 200 years in the future.

The question of how Jem broke the stones comes up. Is it a sign that both his parents are travelers? Could this be a sign that Roger really is Jem’s father? That’s something Bree believes.

Brianna, Roger, and Jemmy go through the stones

The small family unit ask Young Ian to accompany them to the stones. They need someone they can trust to see them through and take the horses and cart back home. It shows the trust in Young Ian, even if he really does want to go with them.

The three are bound together by rope and each take a gem for safe passage through the stones. Young Ian is shocked to see them disappear before his very eyes. He touches the rocks but nothing happens.

In another time, Brianna, Roger, and Jem wake up on the ground. The rope has broken but they’re all together. The big question is when they are. We’ll have to wait until the finale to find out.

Trouble at the Ridge

Back at the Ridge, Lionel Brown brings his wife for medical help. Her wrist is broken and it’s clear that Lionel abuses his wife. She later tells Claire that this was because she refused to lie with her husband. It sounds like she doesn’t want a child with him and mentions Dr. Rawlings’s suggestions on how to avoid a baby.

Lionel sees Dr. Rawlings’s name on one of Claire’s items. He knows the truth.

It’s not surprising that later on, Lionel brings his group of men who are supposed to keep law and order in the town. After causing an explosion at the whiskey hut to lure Jamie, Fergus, and others out, Lionel and his men attack Claire and Marsali.

Germain is hidden under a bed, while Marsali (who is pregnant again) is knocked unconscious. The patient they were treating is stabbed in the gut. Claire is taken with a bag put over her head.

By the time Jamie and Fergus get back, Germain tells them “mummy won’t wake up.” Don’t worry, Marsali is just unconscious. However, Jamie knows something terrible has happened. He lights the Fiery Cross and makes a call to arms.

What did you think of Outlander Season 5, Episode 11? Share your thoughts in the comments below.

Outlander Season 5’s finale airs on May 10 at 8/7c on STARZ.